Faults:

A week after purchase in December 2005 the car lost power whilst driving on the M5 in the outside lane and I was luckily able to get into the inside lane on reduced power. Could have been a dangerous manoeuver had I been beside a group of lorries. Had to be towed to my destination. Fault: recalibration of diesel jets.

On 19 April 2007 engine completely cut out on a busy single carriage road and I was fortunate that vehicle behind was able to stop. Had to be towed to garage. Fault: camshaft sensor and wire assembly.

General Comments:

I cannot risk keeping this car in case such incidents occur again resulting in a serious accident. I have owned many cars in over 40 years of driving and none have ever had an engine that has just cut out without any warning.

On the plus side the car is comfortable to drive, handles well and has plenty of power.

Faults:

Injectors needed replacing one by one starting at 64k. They went all within a month.

Water pump replaced at 60K.

Front Suspension arms on first MOT.

Water leaking in from rear door seals. (Not fixed yet).

Heavy tyre wear on front making tyres last not much more than 10k.

General Comments:

Not a bad car to drive for a four door saloon. Modern diesel engine is powerful, fairly quite and more refined. Gearbox is smooth and changes nicely. Probably more of a drivers car than rivals.

Comfort wise the car is good although I think it would be better without the 18" alloys. The dashboard looks well equipped, but does feel a bit cheaper than the earlier Mondeo.

Reliability and build quality doesn't appear to match up to German rivals. Injectors are very pricey when they go wrong.

Service costs were higher than expected.

My friends who currently own Fords are very impressed with this car. I like the car, but I am not sure if I would buy another.

Faults:

Heated front screen failed.

Dashboard lights flicker due to loose wires.

Rear right suspension making horrid noise.

General Comments:

Going on the reputation of the Mondeo, I opted for a TDCI 130 engine because I wanted a bit of fizz with good economy.

Handling is good, although in the wet the front end is a bit loose and the wheel have a tendency to spin if you floor it.

The beige interior is a bit 'different' (the words 'old' and 'man' came out of my mates' mouths) but the seats are comfy and for long trips they don't cripple you.

The stereo stalk on the steering wheel column is poorly placed if you have long legs (I'm 6' 3") but legroom is good and the adjustable driver's seat will suit most shapes and sizes.

The electrics are well placed and the dash and controls are well-placed and very tactile.

The heated front screen is a godsend in the cold (when it works) and visibility out of the front and side is good, although the rear quarter on the hatchback does obscure rear vision a bit.

On long journeys I'm getting about 45mpg and around town it's a reasonable 35mpg for such a good car- much better than my previous Vectra SRi.

The boot is enormous and rear legroom is superb.

Mine has the massive 18" wheels that do kerb easy (watch turning into the kerb) but they look great and it looks nearly as good as an ST220 with its big front and rear bumpers.

The exhaust sheared off after a day, but the dealer (Shepshed Ford) replaced it in 10 minutes, even though it wasn't officially covered by the warranty.

The rear suspension is making a funny noise, as if it's bottoming out on the bump stop, something that's made even more annoying because the suspension on the Zetec-S is hard - watch those speed bumps and potholes!!

All in all, I like this car and am pleased that Mr brown isn't getting too much of my hard-earned every time I fill up... an ST version is definitely my next buy!!